Of course events in Belgium were all overshadowed by the spy row and what happened with that on the Thursday prior to the race weekend. Maybe a few people at
McLaren had there minds elsewhere and were not quite as focused as they should have been.
It will definitely have had an effect on them – but whether that effect has come all the way through to on-track performance I’m not so sure.
Whatever I think, that will get rectified very quickly and by Japan I don’t think it will be an issue, especially as they have now accepted the judgement and won’t appeal against the ruling passed by the World Motor Sport Council.
McLaren do need to improve though and
Lewis Hamilton in particular has got to pick his game up and try and compete with
Fernando Alonso on a more even-keel.
Fernando has definitely been on his game in the last few races and it has been detrimental to Lewis’ world championship lead, which has been shrinking and is now just two points.
Lewis needs a podium in Japan and if the Ferraris are battling it out for first and second, then he needs to be third to pick up as many points as possible and get that lead re-adjusted in his favour.
It has not been going to plan lately for him. He has been off the podium for a couple of races and he has not had the same sparkle that he had at the beginning of the season.
Having said that though we are getting towards the end of the season and he is still leading the world championship. Obviously the pressure is building and he has never been in this position before. In that sense then he is still doing a fantastic job.
Fuji will be new territory too and that should be advantageous to Lewis. Everybody will be on a bit of an even-keel for the start of the weekend as
Formula 1 hasn’t been there since 1977.
No one knows the circuit really and while some guys may have competed there in previous formulas, overall it will be a clean sheet and that should make things a bit more unpredictable.
